Mendenhall Glacier: hop Juneau's blue bus to this beautiful spot!

Glaciers are listed as the  #2 reason why people travel to Alaska, and Mendenhall is exactly what they're looking for! 
(wonder what the #1 reason is?   Wildlife!)

It's spectacular!
A tidewater glacier (meaning it flows directly down into the water) with a gushing waterfall alongside!  Postcard perfect, just check it out:

 You can see BEARS!  Steep Creek runs through the woods and into Mendenhall Lake, spawning salmon and attracting bears.  This lazy guy just finished a full fish feast, and is trying to sleep it off!


It has a great trail system!  You can walk to various overlooks where you can photo incredibly blue icebergs, 

  

or hike all the way out to the "beach" at the base of the waterfall!  It's a relatively flat, easy trail that only takes about 20 minutes. 

It's easy to get to!
If you're not on a cruiseship with an organized shore excursion, just hop on the town's blue Glacier Express Bus and for 5 bucks, in 10 minutes, you're at Mendenhall's entrance!

There're a lot of "extras" at Mendenhall!  You can hire a private guide to helicopter to the icefield above Mendenhall, for a glacier trek!  You can go ice climbing or enjoy a kayak on the glacier lake.   You can even camp overnight up on the glacier!

You can learn a lot!
There's a great visitor's center, complete with Fish Cam to watch the salmon spawn!   The wall of glass let's you enjoy a warm beverage while you soak in the scene!


FAST FACTS OF MENDENHALL:
Mendenhall Glacier is 12 miles long, and 1.5 miles wide, with ice that's 800' thick! 

BONUS TIP:
Before you leave Juneau, make a quick stop at Tracy's Crab Shack.  For $24.99, you can get one King Crab leg, a warm roll, and butter, and it's worth every cent!